3800X2 OCing

T

TrueChaos

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jan 9, 2006
Messages
142
Hey all, got my nice little 3800X2 up to 2.5 @1.400v (detected by CPUz, set to 1.375 in bios). Managed to make it through a 3dMark06 run like this, bsod'd right after I hit submit, so it went in.

Full Specs:

A8n-SLi
3800X2
BFG7800GTX
2x512mb OCZ Premier series 2.5-3-3-7

Now, bumping up the voltage a lot, to 1.4v in bios, I can manage 2.55, fails prime almost immediatly. Not sure how it would handle 3dm06. At the end of the 3dm06 run, Im not sure if it was the gfx card or the proc that was causing what looked to be wierd colour effects, not like the small pixilated whiteness of normal artifacting, but almost like textures being misrendered.

Now, what im trying to figure out right now is whats holding me back. This ram seems to be pickey about running on anything that isnt a multiple of 10... so im not sure if lowering my divider to test cpu is actually erroring because of the memory. Is there any way to test this?

Any other suggestions on how to push this chip farther would be greatly appreciated :D

Thanks
-Cameron
 
put the RAM on a 166 (5/4) divider and giv it a try, it should work just fine.

and also run it at 2.5 with 1.4volts in the BIOS

failing prime within minutes is not acceptable even failing within a couple of hours is not good. you should be able to double prime for atleast 8 hours.
 
i run 1.475v in bios at 2.6ghz
it was a bit unstable at 1.450 but i think its a ram problem because its still a bit funky now...
also, u can ran a divider if ur ram cant handle it
 
Not using a stock cooler, using a Scythe samurai Z? I think thats how its spelled, got it for review, anyway. I guess what im really asking is there any sure way to figure out if its the ram or the CPU thats failing?

Im going to guess cpu, because as I increased voltage it got more and more stable...
:eek:

So I guess the real question is, how much voltage can an X2 handle? 1.45? 1.5? :confused:

-Cameron
 
voltage is also dependent on cooling...if ur running on air, i think the most u shud do is .2v over which is 1.6, tho, i personally wud not go above 1.5v. Many people say that if ur going 1.6v u shud be on water and even then, u run the risk of frying ur chip :p
also, if you are unsure if it is your ram or your cpu, keep the cpu at the same speed/voltage and run a divider on your memory...if all goes well and ur stable for a long time, it will 99% be your memory...if it fails, well then its most likely your cpu
gl
 
omz said:
voltage is also dependent on cooling...if ur running on air, i think the most u shud do is .2v over which is 1.6, tho, i personally wud not go above 1.5v. Many people say that if ur going 1.6v u shud be on water and even then, u run the risk of frying ur chip :p
also, if you are unsure if it is your ram or your cpu, keep the cpu at the same speed/voltage and run a divider on your memory...if all goes well and ur stable for a long time, it will 99% be your memory...if it fails, well then its most likely your cpu
gl
Click to expand...


I will be switching to water within the next few weeks. :D Temps right now are about 51C load, so I think ive got room there. Im pretty sure its the CPU, as running a divider yielded the same result, but increasing cpu voltage gave a little more stability.

My motherboard will only give the cpu 1.5v :mad: Asus A8n-SLi. Served me well, but 1.5 seems to be the max. Maybe I just need a more recent bios...

-Cameron
 
i think there is another option that lets u increase vcore other than actually setting it...haha confusing i know :p
i think the option gives u like 5% or 10% or some percentage to OC over the vcore that is set now :p
also, maybe another bios has a diff type of voltage? not sure...but i love my DFI and its voltages :p
 
I'm running a set up pretty much like OMZ. I'm completely stable on my 3800+ @ 2.6ghz. I'm running a quality 120mm CPU fan and that monster seems to keep my temps down just fine (even my RAM). Look in my signature to see the specifics..

CPU-ZMemory.jpg
[/IMG]

CPU-ZCPU.jpg



By the way.. I was running 1gb of Geil 512x2 PC3200 DDR400 Dual Channel Memory Modules (part number: GE1GB3200BDC) and the most stable OC I ever achieved was 2.5ghz on a 9/10 divider with the memory running at 219mhz, reported by CPU-Z. It just didn't OC as much as I wanted. So, I logged onto Newegg and I bought my Mushkin PC4000 (part number: 991483) early in December and have been running like a champ at 2.6ghz with it set to 1/1 (1T) ever since.

If this helps, here are my BIOS Settings:
FSB Bus Freq: x3.0
CPU/FSB Freq Ratio: Auto
CPU Vid Startup Value: 1.500v
CPU Core Voltage: 1.56v
LTD Bus Voltage: 1.20v
Chipset Voltage: 1.51v
DRAM 2.5v Voltage: 2.85v
CPU Vid Control: 1.450v
CPU Vid Special Control: Above Vid *110%
LTD Voltage Control: 1.20v
Chipset Voltage Control: 1.50v
DRAM Voltage Control: 2.80v


As for heat, my Thermaltake Shark case breaths pretty good. I run around 38c at idle and under 8+ hours of heavy gaming (Far Cry, HL2, F.E.A.R.) it will get up to around 52c. If you need a screen shot of anything, I will do my best to accommodate.
____________________________________

AMD 3800+ x2 Dual Core @ 2.6 ghz @ 1.536 volts
Mushkin eXtreme Performance 2gb (2 x 1GB) PC 4000 RAM / 3-4-3-8 @ 260mhz
Zalman Ultra Quiet CNPS7700-AlCu 120mm CPU Cooler
Coolmax 650w SLi Certified Power Supply
DFI Lanparty UT nF4 Ultra D Mobo
eVGA 7800GTX 256mb @ 498/1390
Maxtor 200gb Hard drive 16mb cache
Thermaltake Shark Case
Hyundai 19" LCD L90D+ Monitor
 
thats some heavy voltage u got there officer
even if ur temps are fine, the power draw is alot and ur chip may still fry, but its up to you
im trying out 1.45v again and its been pretty stable so far...
btw, what stepping do u have officer and OP? my LDBHE seems to get me to 2.6 w/ this voltage and a 4x htt...i even hit 290x9 but now that my ram is all messed up, i gota wait to try and hit 300x9 :mad:
 
I'm very curious as well, and have a setup identical to the OP.

I'm still running stock voltage on my 3800 X2, and managed to get it up 2150. As soon as i hit 2200, the system craps out when running double-prime95 for about 6 hours. I'm pretty sure it is the ram that is the problem, so I'm wondering what voltage and timings are you running those OCZ Premier's at. I have mine set at 2.79v 1:1 with 2.5-3-3-7 1T for the 2150mhz OC. I'm very reluctant to push it past this voltage for 2200mhz.
 
omz said:
thats some heavy voltage u got there officer
even if ur temps are fine, the power draw is alot and ur chip may still fry, but its up to you
im trying out 1.45v again and its been pretty stable so far...
btw, what stepping do u have officer and OP? my LDBHE seems to get me to 2.6 w/ this voltage and a 4x htt...i even hit 290x9 but now that my ram is all messed up, i gota wait to try and hit 300x9 :mad:
Click to expand...


Well as for my stepping.. I didn't note the stamp on my processor when I first installed it.. It is covered with Arctic Silver No.5 and has the huge Zalman Fan on it, so I am not able to copy it down. I ran the program CHKCPU ( http://web.inter.nl.net/hcc/J.Steunebrink/chkcpu.htm ) and here is what I learned about my specific processor:

SteppingAMD.jpg
[/IMG]


I know my serial number on my processor, so if you know how to track it that way, that would be another option.. As for my HTT, it is set at 3x. I tried everything to get the voltage in the 14+ volts range as I increased my voltage in .25 steps.. My current voltage is the very first voltage setting that was completely stable.. I've done a lot of reading on the 3800+ and from what a large majority of the OC'ers and Benchmarkers are saying is, 15 volts is the definate line.. the closer the 16 volt mark, the larger the risk of damaging the processor. For me, 15.36 is the absolute lowest setting in voltage that was stable.. I've seen a few others lower than me and I've seen several others higher than me.. So just like you said, knowing the risks going into it, it's a small risk that I'm willing to take.. (having a 3 year AMD warranty also helps..hehehe).
 
raxen said:
I'm very curious as well, and have a setup identical to the OP.

I'm still running stock voltage on my 3800 X2, and managed to get it up 2150. As soon as i hit 2200, the system craps out when running double-prime95 for about 6 hours. I'm pretty sure it is the ram that is the problem, so I'm wondering what voltage and timings are you running those OCZ Premier's at. I have mine set at 2.79v 1:1 with 2.5-3-3-7 1T for the 2150mhz OC. I'm very reluctant to push it past this voltage for 2200mhz.
Click to expand...


Your system is much more capable than your current settings. I'm sure 2.4 - 2.5 would be an excellent start.. At 2.6ghz, you need to realize that you are beginning to really push the processor. OMZ sounds like a wiz when squeezing every single last drop of performance out of his 3800+ !
 
Not exactly sure of stepping, all ive got is what CPU-Z gives me.

stepping0bi.jpg


Thats just an easy stable level that I run at for everyday use... Il prob give er a lil more voltage tomorrow and see what I can do. Not gonna go past 1.475 untill I get water though.

Apparently the ram ive got, OCZ Premier Series, loves lots of voltage... Im gonna try bumping its voltage up to about 2.9 and seeing if I can get it to run 1:1 @ 250mhz 3-4-4-8. Couldnt complain about that, dunno if it'l go tho. Friend of mine had his at 280 3-4-4-8 @ 3V.

-Cameron
 
Hey OMZ.... I've been trying to get my voltage down and still maintain a stable 2.6ghz OC.. I also want to keep my x10 multiplier and 1T on my RAM.. Any suggestions?
 
I ended up lowering my OC to 2.5 ghz. I also lowered the voltage to 1.425. It's 8+ hours Prime 95 stable and ran Memtest all day long. I'm gonna stick with this setting as my 3800+ x2 seems right at home.
 
im running my 3800x2 @ 2.6 all day set on 260x10 my ram,s about 179 not 200 if i set the multi to 166 on the ram she wont boot at all i can hit 2.7 but it locks up in PI
 
What does the avg seem to be? 2.4-2.5? What about with a scythe ninja w/gskill extreme ram?
 
I'm speaking from limited experience but 2.4 -2.5 ghz is very attainable on a 3800+ x2 processor. Sounds like you have the cooling issue covered and the right kind of RAM. The G.Skill is PC3200 isn't it? I know a few people that run their systems at 2.4ghz with DDR400 ram and they swear by it. I'm not sure how OC'able your specific ram is. With that said, I used to own some Geil "value ram". I did set a divider but was able to get my system up to 2.4 ghz.

But now, I have PC4000 ram, which runs normallly at 250 mhz.. So all I did basically was keep my x10 multiplier when I went into the BIOS and increased my speed from 200 to 250. Viola... 2.5ghz. I was able to keep it 1:1 ratio (1T). Completely stable!

2.jpg
[/IMG]

CPU-Z2.jpg
[/IMG]
 
I finally took my fan off because I was curious about the numbers on my processor. Here is what I found.. Good? Bad?

MyAMDProcessor01.jpg
[/IMG]
 
officermartinez said:
I finally took my fan off because I was curious about the numbers on my processor. Here is what I found.. Good? Bad?

MyAMDProcessor01.jpg
[/IMG]
Click to expand...
it'll be a yr old in May :p

mine is 0607!!!
 
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